1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a bail arm inverting apparatus for a fishing reel.
2. Description of the Prior Art
A bail serves to guide a fishing line so it does not get tangled when the fishing line is wound on to a spool. One end of the bail is fastened to an arm projecting from the rotor of the reel, and the other end of the bail is attached to an arm-lever support arm, projecting from the opposite side of the rotor, via an arm-lever. Thus, the bail is attached to and rotates as a unit with the rotor when the rotor is rotated. When the fishing line is thrown, the bail arm must be rotated to an inverted, throwing position, out of the way of the line, such that the fishing line is not obstructed and can unwind properly.
A typical example of a prior art bail arm inverting apparatus is disclosed in Korean Utility Model Publication No. 89-7945 in which a projection formed on the trigger lever pushes against operating part of the arm-lever. According to this apparatus, as the trigger lever is pulled up, the projection pushes the operating part of the arm lever forward and the arm-lever is caused to pivot to the throwing position. A tension spring is fastened to a portion of the arm-lever to increase the pivot angle of the arm-lever and to bias the arm-lever when the arm-lever is in its original, non-inverted winding position. In this apparatus, as the inverting motion and returning motion are repeated, fatigue hardening occurrs in the tension spring. While the tension spring is purported to be capable over 15,000 cycles, in actuality, function of the spring is decreased and ultimately fails after about 4,000 to 5,000 cycles due to the properties and heat treatment of the material.
Korean Utility Model Publication No. 90-4026 discloses an inverting apparatus which employs a gear mechanism. The apparatus increases the overall dimensions of the arm-lever support arm and the weight is partially concentrated. As a result, rotational balance of the rotor is destroyed and reliable operation of the reel is not realized.
An inverting apparatus according to Korean Utility Model Publication No. 89-7946, as shown in FIGS. 1 to 4, uses a crank 9 to which the tension spring 7 is attached and on which a projection 8 is formed. In this apparatus, trigger lever 15 is pulled toward the fishing rod, i.e., upward as shown in FIG. 1 and into the plane of the page as shown in FIG. 2. The operating projection 17 formed on the opposite, non-pulled end of the lever 15 pushes against the projection 8 on the crank 9 and forces the bail-arm to pivot. Even if the apparatus of this Utility Model overcomes the problems encountered with the two above-mentioned apparatuses, it requires many components, much more labor and endeavor to assemble, and the original problem with respect to life of the tension spring 7 is still encountered.
Recently, as disclosed in Korean Patent Publication No. 93-6352, the apparatus gets popular approval in which, by the use of a link, the projecting pin integrally formed on one point of the surrounding portion adjacent to the axis of the arm-lever is pushed off to pivot the bail arm toward the throwing position. However, the apparatus still suffers from the fact that the apparatus requires many components, the operating part of the trigger lever is exposed to an outside, thereby a foreign material can to get between the parts, increasing failure factor, and the "thumb phenomenon" in which the link jumps over the boss to make the apparatus breakdown, occurrs.